Being Māori and being proud keeps me strong: Evidence from the Youth2000 survey series on cultural identity and mental health outcomes

Abstract

We will share our findings from the Youth2000 survey series showing trends in mental health for New Zealand’s youth and our growing evidence that supports the notion that cultural identity is a potent protective factor for emotional wellbeing and mental health. We will also present our findings on the devastating impacts of ethnic discrimination on the emotional wellbeing, mental health and suicidal ideation among Māori youth. Finally, we will discuss implications for these findings for policy, practice and programming.